Indigenous authors with ties to northwestern Ontario share their latest works

Indigenous writers with ties to northwestern Ontario are sharing their most recent works with the goal of educating Canadians about Indigenous culture and the nation's calls to action for truth and reconciliation.

CBC's Superior Morning is featuring three authors on its special show for the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on Monday: Storm Angeconeb, Niigaan Sinclair and Martha Troian.

The interviews can be found on the CBC Listen page following the show, which ends shortly after 8:30 a.m. ET.

Here's a roundup of the authors' latest books, and what they hope readers take away from them.

Storm Angeconeb's All My Relations

Storm Angeconeb is a member of Lac Seul First Nation in northwestern Ontario. All My Relations — Indinawemaaganidag is the first children's book she has written and illustrated, and tells the story of the animals of Sandy Beach Lodge.

"That lake is home. It's where my grandma and my grandfather worked every summer when I was a kid, so this is really for them because they taught me everything that I know," she told Superior Morning.

The book aims to highlight the relationship between the natural world and Angeconeb's family and traditions, and give thanks to all living beings. Inspired by the artist Norval Morrisseau, the illustrations feature colourful images of animals, such as moose, bears and eagles.

For Angeconeb, celebrating her culture in this way is important to inspire the next generation, including her son.

"Not even that far long ago, we weren't allowed to speak about this — about our culture or language," Angeconeb said. "I'm very thankful for the way I grew up. I grew up in ceremony, I grew up around celebration and powwows, and I really want to pass that on to my son."

Niigaan Sinclair's Wînipêk

Wînipêk: Visions of Canada from an Indigenous Centre is Niigaan Sinclair's debut collection of stories. The Winnipeg-based Anishinaabe writer and columnist says the book is about reconciliation work taking place in the Wînipêk watershed, which covers areas in Saskatchewan, Manitoba, northwestern Ontario and parts of the United States.

"You're seeing, of course, the struggles of the past 150 years, the violence that Indigenous peoples have endured, but you're also seeing Canadians and Indigenous people joining together to come up with more solutions than anywhere else found virtually in the country, other than maybe the north," Sinclair said.

While change has been slow, Sinclair said he feels hopeful that Canada is moving in the right direction. For example, when his father was born, Indigenous people were not allowed to vote, leave their reserves or hire lawyers. Last year, Wab Kinew became the first Indigenous premier in the country.

"Indigenous success is success for everybody, but not always the other way around. Canadian success has often come at the cost of Indigenous peoples," Sinclair said.

"It begins with the principle of removing the barriers and the obstacles and the injustices Indigenous peoples are experiencing, but also making sure that they are full and complete partners in relationships in Canada: economic partners, social partners, cultural partners."

Sinclair is coming to Thunder Bay next month to participate in the Thunder Bay Public Library's Indigenous Author Series.

Martha Troian's It's Powwow Time!

Martha Troian is an investigative journalist from Lac Seul First Nation in northwestern Ontario. It's Powwow Time!, illustrated by Hawlii Pichette, is a little different from her usual publications, as it tells the story of a boy named Bineshii going to his first-ever powwow.

"When my son was younger, we often would travel to different powwows and we were watching him just tapping to the beat of the drum," Troian said of her inspiration for the book. "He was super curious, so we got some regalia made for him."

"He was just a little tiny boy, and he was dancing next to this large man and he was in a traditional regalia," she recalled. "He just felt so confident on his own to be dancing next to people, next to other dancers."

Over the years, Troian said she's become more encouraged by the growing number of Indigenous authors in bookstores.

"There are so many more Indigenous books on the shelves today than there were in my generation, and it's just so great that children can see themselves in these books," she said.

Her hope is that the book educates other children about what powwows are — and inspires them to dance, too.

Local Indigenous Youth Creative Writing Award winners

While they haven't published their first books yet, other Indigenous authors from northwestern Ontario were recently celebrated at the Lieutenant Governors' Legacy Awards ceremony in Toronto earlier this month.

Jersey Kakekayash of Weagamow, also known as North Caribou Lake First Nation, and Loveena Nothing of Bearskin Lake First Nation, are among the recipients of this year's James Bartleman Indigenous Youth Creative Writing Award.

Kakekayash won for her poem titled Sasha/Grandma Weagamow's Embrace, while Nothing was celebrated for a piece she wrote about volleyball.

"I like how it brings me and my friends together," Nothing, age 12, said of the sport.

For Nothing, writing helps her express her feelings, and she encourages others to use it as an outlet.

"We're all trying to find our way. If you don't know what to do, write what you feel down," she said.